The Lone Girl
by jayfeather12345
Summary: I've been spying on Team Flare since I was 10 and I never needed more protection before. Then Prof Sycamore forced a pokemon on me. I have no idea how to train a pokemon, much less care for it. I guess it's not all bad though. I get to fight bad guys, save the world, and my new neighbor is kinda cute. But I'm a lone girl, and no-one can make me change.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I don't own pokémon... *sigh*

Note:

Before you start reading I should just warn you about a couple of things. Firstly, I haven't watched the latest anime episodes with Serena in them yet. I've only played the game X, so if Serena seems a bit OOC then that's because I am basically making her character up as I go along. Secondly, the plot is based on Pokémon X but I've added in lots of things (and changed it from the anime) so that it is a bit AU, because Serena has been a spy for Professor Sycamore since she was ten (she's now sixteen).

Anyway, hopefully you'll like my new story (and check out my other pokémon fanfics if you haven't already!) and be motivated to review. Without further ado, here's the prologue.

* * *

**Prologue**

"It's no use – there's just too many of them," I whispered into the mouthpiece of my Holo Caster. "Should I pull out, or…?"

In front of me was a projection of my mentor, Professor Sycamore. He looked worried. "What is your exact situation?" he asked. He was obviously hesitant to completely abandon the mission but I knew he didn't want to place me in danger, either.

I looked up. I was hiding behind a rock at the entrance to Glittering Cave. Several men and women were coming and going, always in pairs. They wore bright red outfits and they all had bright red hair with matching red sunglasses. The women's hair was styled with two pigtails whereas the men all had one pigtail off to the side.

"I'm not sure what's going on. They keep entering and leaving the cave in pairs, but I have no idea why," I finally answered.

Professor Sycamore's brow creased in thought. "And you can't see a way of getting inside unseen? No way at all?" he checked.

I bit my lip. "Well, I could steal a uniform and dye my hair but by the time I've done that I bet Team Flare will have finished whatever they're doing here," I said.

"Team Flare?" Although he was only a projection, I could see his gaze sharpen.

I nodded. "Yeah, that's what I heard one say they were called: Team Flare."

"Interesting," the professor murmured.

Overhead, thunder rumbled in the sky. I flinched involuntarily – I never had been very fond of thunder. "Professor?" I urged after a moment of silence. "What do you want me to do?"

Professor Sycamore blinked. "If you had some pokémon with you I would tell you to just try and sneak inside because if you ran into trouble you wouldn't be defenceless, but seeing as you don't then I see nothing for it. You'll have to abort the mission," he told me eventually.

"I'm not defenceless," I argued. "I've been training in martial arts since you recruited me when I was ten," I reminded him. "You know how good I am at self-defence now."

Professor Sycamore shook his head. "Those Team Flare people, I am fairly sure they have pokémon with them," he guessed accurately. I could see the pokéballs on their belts as they passed in front of my rock, so I nodded in agreement. "Against people you are very skilled, I agree, but against pokémon? I'm sorry Serena, but there's no way you can defend yourself against pokémon," he told me.

Reluctantly I had to agree with him. "I could try though. Maybe they wouldn't see me."

"That's a very big 'maybe'," the professor pointed out. "Serena, I don't want you to get hurt. Anyway, your mother might start to worry soon. You should teleport back to her before she realises you're missing."

I glanced at my watch. "She'll be in the middle of a race right now," I said, but I found the teleport app on my watch – or pokétch, to call it by its proper name – and began typing in the coordinates I would need to send myself back home. It had been developed by a man called Professor Rowan who lived in the Sinnoh region using the same kind of power the pokémon Abra uses to teleport itself. Apparently he had only made a few for certain people; I felt honoured to be one of them.

"Good girl," Professor Sycamore nodded. "Ah, it looks like Professor Rowan is calling me. I had better answer him. I'll talk to you soon, okay?"

I nodded. "Sure. Bye," I said and ended the Holo Cast. Then I took one last look at the Team Flare members standing outside the cave before pressing the button on my pokétch which would teleport me back home.

* * *

**In Professor Sycamore's Lab**

"Professor Rowan? To what do I owe the pleasure of this call?" Professor Sycamore greeted his old mentor calmly.

"Augustine, it's good to see you too," Professor Rowan smiled warmly on the other end of the video call. "As for the reason for this call: I have been talking with the other professors – Juniper, Oak, Birch and Elm – and we have come to a decision that since our spies have all now reached the age of sixteen it is time for them to receive pokémon. It is no longer safe for them to spy on the enemy teams without protection," he said, dicing straight in with his news.

Professor Sycamore nodded slowly and thought back to his conversation with Serena. If she had had pokémon with her, she could have found out more concerning Team Flare's plans. "I see your point," he replied.

"Yes. As you know, every professor each has two spies, the primary spy being a girl and the secondary spy being a boy, both of the same age but unaware that the other exists," Professor Rowan continued.

"Yes, I am aware of that. I do have two spies myself, you know," the Kalos professor put in, glancing at a clock on the wall of his lab.

Ignoring him, Professor Rowan carried on: "So we have decided to 'pair' our spies up with another spy of the same gender in a different region and send them all off on pokémon journeys."

Professor Sycamore frowned. "I don't understand."

Professor Rowan sighed. "My female spy, Dawn Berlitz, will be given a partner from another region. I have decided to pair her up with Leaf Green, Professor Oak's primary spy in Kanto. My secondary spy, Paul Shinji, will be partnered with the male spy in Kanto – Professor Oak's grandson, Gary Oak. The other spies in the other regions are also being partnered up. Once they have 'met' their partners they will be told to keep in touch via phone and they all have teleport devices so that if any of them get into a sticky situation they can help each other out. They will all be given starter pokémon and told to go off on a journey to get stronger, and they have to win at least four badges each before they are allowed to actively be spies once more," Professor Rowan explained.

"I understand, but what does this have to do with me?"

"I want you to send your primary and secondary spies off on pokémon journeys, as I just explained. However I am afraid only your secondary spy can have a partner in another region. Your primary spy will have to go alone," the Sinnoh professor revealed.

"Ah," Professor Sycamore paused, thinking over his old mentor's words. "That shouldn't be a problem. Serena always has been independent," he shrugged.

Professor Rowan nodded. "So you agree then? You'll send your spies off on pokémon journeys? And you won't tell them about the other? It is very important they each think they are the only spy you have," Professor Rowan reminded him.

"I will do as you have asked and send them off on their pokémon journeys," Professor Sycamore confirmed. "If that is all then I must be going – I'm extremely busy at the moment," he said.

Professor Rowan nodded. "That's all. Goodbye, Augustine."

Professor Sycamore ended the call there, and then looked down at his Holo Caster. He let out a breath of air as he wondered how he was going to break the news to Serena. It wouldn't be easy, he knew that.

* * *

**Author's Note: **So, how did you like it? Or not like it? I would love to hear from you in a review! The next chapter should be up soon because I feel very motivated to write right now, but reviews will really help my imagination so please do make use of the review box down below! Concrit is welcome but please no flames.

Thanks for reading,

~ Jay


	2. Sycamore Did What!

**Disclaimer: ***Sniffle* Pokemon isn't mine.

I re-wrote this chapter three or four times trying to get it right and make sure all the introductions weren't boring, and it came out a lot longer than I expected it to. I would have cut it in half, but I wanted to end on a cliff hanger so... you guys can thank me later ;)

Anyway, this chapter is mainly a filler chapter with most of the main characters being introduced and I also tried to build up Serena's character and create some mystery about her past, so hopefully it'll be interesting.

Anyway,

Enjoy.

* * *

**Chapter One**

**~ Sycamore Did What?! ~**

I was woken the next morning when my mother's Fletchling, nicknamed Flight, canoed into my stomach, shocking me up into a sitting position. Seeing it was only Flight I let out a groan and flopped back down again. However Flight was having none of it and began to peck me until I gave in and rolled out of bed. He didn't peck me hard but I found myself rubbing my arms as I got dressed.

Flight finally left me alone and I scowled after him. I had never really liked pokémon. Sure, they were useful for helping you out with chores and things like that (just don't tell my mum that I made Flight help me clean the kitchen floor yesterday, oaky?) and I know loads of teenagers like to go on pokémon journeys, but I personally find them annoying and needy.

"Serena, are you up yet?" my mother called up from downstairs. I rolled my eyes. As if I was still asleep after Flight used his beak on me. Without answering I checked my appearance in the mirror – I was wearing my black and red high-waisted outfit with long socks, black high tops, my red felt hat that had a black ribbon around it complete with white sunglasses on top. My long, honey-blonde hair was loose and felt around my shoulders. I also have bright blue eyes which go nicely with my hair colour – I get them from my mum, and my hair colour from my dad, or so I'm told. Then I ran down the stairs to find my mum in the kitchen.

"Morning," I said, jumping the last two steps of the staircase.

My mum looked like she was cooking something on the stove, but she turned around when I appeared. "Ah, there you are darling," she smiled. I scowled. I don't like it when people call me pet names like 'darling' or 'honey' or anything like that. Nicknames I don't mind, but pet names just irk me. Mum laughed at the expression on my face. "Sit down and eat breakfast, I cooked you a fried egg," she told me. Instantly my face brightened.

"Thanks Mum!" I quickly hopped over a couple of boxes and sat down at the kitchen table. "So did you want me to help with some unpacking today?" I mumbled through a mouthful of food.

"Do I really have to remind you not to eat with your mouth full?" Mum sighed. I just grinned as she joined me at the table.

"Actually, I thought you could go out and meet the neighbours this morning while Flight and I do most of the unpacking," she suggested. We had only just moved to Vaniville yesterday evening, and boxes still littered the place.

I raised my eyebrows in surprise. "Thanks mum, but I don't mind helping." Mentally I smacked myself. If she was willing to let me off then why was I _asking_ to help? Usually I'd do anything to get out of doing chores. I blamed Flight for waking me up too early and confusing my brain.

"No, that's all right, I think some socialising will do you good. Finished? Good, off you go," Mum took the plate I had literally only just finished eating off out from under my nose and pulled me up, pushing me towards the door. Before I could voice a single protest I was standing outside the front door. Well, that was weird.

I looked around me at the front garden. There was a path leading up to the gate and several bushes plus one tree lined the path, along with a blanket stretched out over the grass on one side of the path where my mum's favourite and oldest Ryhorn partner lay sleeping. However that's not what caught my attention. Just inside the gate, a boy and a girl who looked around my age were arguing with each other. The girl had brown hair in cool pigtails that looped round before curving down towards the ground and she was wearing a pink top with black bows on it accompanied by short shorts and pink high tops. Her eyes were a pretty green colour.

When I looked at the boy, I noticed that he was slightly taller than both me and the girl he was arguing with. He had longish black hair that framed his face but it didn't make him look like a girl; I thought it suited him. Most of his face was angled away from me, so I only caught a glimpse of what he looked like when he briefly moved his face towards me before turning away again. For a moment I listened to their argument, and I couldn't help but smile when I heard what it was about.

"You should knock; she's a girl like you are," the boy was saying.

The girl shook her head. "So? I think you should knock because you're the man here – aren't you supposed to be all brave and manly now?" (I stifled a chuckle when she said this.)

"How is knocking on a door 'manly'? Besides, you've known me long enough to know I don't care about that stuff. Just go and knock, you might as well get it over with," the boy replied.

I decided it was time for me to announce my presence, so I gave a small cough and they both turned towards me. Their eyes widened in surprise when they saw me and I had to hold back a laugh at the expressions on their faces. "Hi, I'm Serena," I said since both of them seemed to be speechless. "Were you looking for me, or…?"

The girl recovered first. "Hi Serena," she chirped. "I guess you heard us arguing, huh?" I nodded and she smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, sorry about that. Both of us are actually quite shy you see," she attempted to explain but the boy snorted.

"Shy my foot," he muttered. I looked at him properly for the first time, and oh my gosh he was cute. I quickly looked back at the girl, pushing that thought to the back of my mind.

"That's okay," I shrugged. "Sorry, I didn't catch your names?" I prompted when she didn't introduce herself.

"Oh!" the girl gasped. "Sorry, I completely forgot! My name's Shauna, and I live in Aquacorde Town, which is literally right down the road from here," she told me. I nodded, and glanced past her to the sign post just outside my house which read 'Vaniville Town' and had another sign pointing towards Aquacorde Town attached to it.

"The name's Calem," the boy introduced himself and I felt it would be rude if I didn't look at him, however when I did I felt my eyes being drawn to his grey ones. "I live next door to you," he added, nodding over the wall to the house next to mine. _Seriously? He's the boy next door? Wow, how cliché is that?_

"Cool," I said, not sure how else to reply without making myself look like a total fool. For a moment nobody spoke. Then, a thought occurred to me. "How come you two were arguing about who was going to knock on my door?"

They looked at each other and laughed. "Yeah, that seems like a pretty stupid thing to argue over now," Shauna grinned. "You're really nice, there wasn't really anything to be afraid of after all."

"Um, thanks," I smiled uncertainly. I didn't get told I was 'nice' too often – probably because most of the people I met were at Ryhorn races and all the adults would look at me and call me cute before asking me where they could find my mum.

"What Shauna is trying to say is that Professor Sycamore recently sent word to Shauna, me and two of our other friends that he has some sort of task for five kids including you. But I'm surprised he knows who you are. You did just move here to Vaniville, after all," Calem explained. _Ha. Yeah, I wonder how the Professor knows about me? Maybe, oh just maybe, it's because I've been his spy for six years. But then again, I am only guessing._ However I obviously wasn't going to tell Calem this (even if he _was_ cute). When I didn't say anything he added, "You know who Professor Sycamore is, right?"

I just managed to stop myself from laughing. _Yes, I know who he is. He has been training me as a spy since I was ten, _I thought to myself. But I didn't say that. "Yeah, I've heard of him," was all I said. Then a thought occurred to me – how come the professor hadn't told me about this 'task'? He always told me everything. And why did he need five of us? I was sure that I would be able to complete this 'task' all by myself. Questions whirled around like a snowstorm in my brain, but I couldn't find an answer for any of them.

"Okay, come on then," Shauna grabbed my hand and began pulling me along. She tried to grab Calem's hand too but he skilfully dodged and followed us at his own pace.

"Where are we going, exactly?" I asked as Shauna led the way to the Vaniville Town gate.

"We're meeting our friends at a café in Aquacorde Town," she replied. "So, how are you liking Vaniville Town?"

"Give the girl a break Shauna; she only arrived last night," Calem put in before I could answer.

I gave him a confused look. "How do you know that?"

Calem shrugged. "I saw you and your mother arrive from my bedroom window," he explained before realising how creepy that sounded. "Not that I was spying on you or anything, I was just in my room and I noticed you, that's all!" he added hurriedly.

I laughed, and accepted his explanation with a wave of my hand. I also pointedly looked away from him when I subconsciously began to notice how cute he was when he was flustered.

For the rest of the short walk to Aquacorde Town we all just got to know each other a bit better. I learnt that Shauna and Calem had been best friends since they met when they were five, that Calem's parents were famous pokémon trainers, and that Shauna loved cute pokémon but she, like me, knew nothing about how to look after pokémon.

"What about you, Serena?" Shauna asked me as the Aquacorde gate appeared in sight.

I glanced at her, confused. "What about me?"

"We've told you lots about us, now it's your turn," she clarified.

"Um, okay, well…" I wondered what I could tell them that was interesting about me. "Oh, I know. My mother is Grace, the famous Ryhorn racer," I told them, watching curiously for their reactions.

Shauna squealed in excitement. "That's amazing!"

However Calem almost choked, turning to stare at me. "No way, you have a famous parent too?" he exclaimed. I nodded, sighing. "That sucks," he sympathised and I looked at him in surprise.

"Yeah, I know," I agreed. "I mean, it's bad enough that I have to go to all of Mum's races with her because everyone always coos at me and calls me 'cute' or 'sweet' like I'm some two year old, but when I'm out in public I have to call her 'Grace' like we're not even related," I told him, hardly noticing as we entered Aquacorde Town.

"I know how that feels," Calem nodded. "Looks like we have more in common than I thought we did, neighbour." He flashed me a smile and I tried to return it without melting under the warm gaze of his friendly grey eyes. _Get a hold of yourself_, I scolded myself silently. _He's just a boy, for goodness sake! Although he is a cute boy… Okay I need to stop thinking now_.

"Look, there's Tierno and Trevor," Shauna cut in, pointing over to where two boys were seated at a table belonging to one of the cafés just inside the entrance to Aquacorde Town. "Let's go and let them know we're here," she added, taking off enthusiastically to go and greet them.

Calem and I exchanged a glance behind her back, and it made my heart flutter to do so. "Is she always this… excitable?" I asked after searching for the right word while trying to make my heart calm down.

Calem grinned. "You should see her when something that is actually exciting happens, like at her birthday last year," he commented as we followed Shauna but at a more leisurely pace. I wanted to ask him to elaborate on that, but we had reached the table and Shauna was already bouncing up and down in her seat to introduce me.

"Guys, this is Serena, Calem's new neighbour and the newest member to our friendship group!" Shauna announced. I hesitated before slipping into the only spare seat which, incidentally, happened to be next to Calem.

"Hi," I smiled nervously at the two boys opposite me.

"Serena, these are Trevor and Tierno – Tierno loves rocking out on the dance floor, and Trevor is a bit shy but he's an excellent scholar," Shauna finished the introductions. Trevor was a small, thin boy with ginger hair and grey eyes. Tierno was the opposite of Trevor in both looks and, at first glance, personality too. While Tierno greeted me with an enthusiastic 'Hi!' and lots of random hand gestures, Trevor simply said 'Nice to meet you' and raised his hand in a limp wave. It felt nice when Shauna introduced me as 'the newest member to our friendship group' too – I'd never had real friends before. _And you can't have real friends now,_ I scolded myself. _They'll just get in the way of your spy work. Besides, you don't need friends when you can experience the thrill of chasing bad guys every other night._ I smiled inwardly at that thought. I loved the adrenaline rush I got when on a mission for Prof. Sycamore.

"Hey," I greeted them. "So what are we here for anyway?" I asked, getting straight to the point.

A huge grin appeared on Tierno's face. "Oh, you guys are so gonna love this," he promised. "You all know - well I guess Serena won't know this, but… anyway, Trevs and I already got pokémon since we live in Lumiose City," he began. A bad feeling formed in my stomach as I wondered where this was going.

"I thought I told you not to call me 'Trevs'," Trevor muttered.

Shauna rolled her eyes. "But Trevs, you know we all have nicknames for each other," she pouted.

Trevor shook his head. "Serena doesn't have a nickname and she's our friend now," he pointed out. _Hey, don't bring me into this!_

Shauna glanced at me. "You're right! Come on guys, we need a good nickname for Serena." Her eyes gleamed in excitement. "I know, what about Lil' S?"

"Nah, I think Lady S," Tierno disagreed. I tapped my fingers absentmindedly on the table top. I wanted to find out what the task was. "What do you think Trevs?"

Trevor recoiled. "You're asking me to nickname someone I only just met? Thanks for putting me on the spot… Um, I think something low-key, like S-kins?" he suggested. They all looked at me and I wrinkled my nose. None of those really appealed to me, but I didn't want to be rude and tell them I didn't like the names.

That's when Calem spoke up. "What about Seri?" he asked quietly. I looked at him, shocked. Seri… that was the name my father had called me before – well, it was what he had called me. I hated it when anyone else called me that name because it meant something special to me and when other people just threw it around casually, it made me squirm. However when Calem suggested it, I realised I didn't mind so much. Maybe it was something about the quiet, serious voice with which he had said it or perhaps it was the way he genuinely wanted to call me that, but I wasn't sure. All I knew was that it might not be so bad if my new 'friends' called me Seri, since Calem suggested it in the way that he did.

Seeing the look of approval on my face, Shauna cried out triumphantly. "Seri it is!" I bit my lip automatically, but I supposed I could live with it. It was definitely better than the nicknames the others had come up with for me.

"Anyway, what were you saying before, Tierno?" I asked the big guy.

"Oh yeah, that's right. Professor Sycamore wants us to travel to his lab in Lumiose City where he'll tell us what our real task is but for now he said he wants us to all become pokémon trainers and complete the pokédex," Tierno finished.

My heart almost stopped. "He said what?" I growled, gripping the table. _Breathe,_ I told myself, _just breathe_.

Ignorant of my dark expression, Tierno repeated himself happily. "The professor wants us to all become pokémon trainers, so he's giving us all a pokémon! Or, actually he's giving you, Cale and Shaunster pokémon, since Trevs and I already have our pokémon."

"He's doing _what_?" I muttered under my breath. No way would Sycamore do this. He knows I don't get along with… those _things_. But, upon hearing Shauna's over-excited scream, I knew I had to face the facts. Sycamore, the only person I had thought I could trust, was forcing me to take on a pokémon. Thinking back to the conversation we had last night about it being too dangerous for me to get a closer look at Team Flare because I didn't have any pokémon and they did, his decision made perfect sense_. But that doesn't mean I'm going to accept it. No way. Sycamore is so going to regret this. When I reach Lumiose City, he'll have a _**lot**_of explaining to do_.

But I didn't say any of this aloud. Instead I said the only thing I could without sounding like I was about to explode: "Cale and Shaunster are your nicknames? So what's Tierno's?"

"I'm the big guy, the boss of everything," Tierno informed me proudly.

"Oh. Cool," I said.

Next to me, Calem was shaking. Literally, shaking – his arm was knocking against mine and I wondered if he was having a fit until I actually looked at him and found a blazing look of excitement upon his face. "I can't believe I'm getting a pokémon," he whispered, so quietly I had to strain my ears to head him. Then he suddenly turned and met my gaze. "And it's all thanks to you."

I blinked. _Huh? _"It is?" I asked, confused.

Calem looked like he could barely contain himself, and I began to lose myself in the depths of emotion portrayed in his eyes. "If you hadn't arrived in Vaniville Town yesterday then who knows how long I would have to wait to become a trainer? So, thank you," he told me. He hesitated and looked for all the world as if he was going to hug me. I didn't think I would mind either, but at that moment one of Shauna's squeals ruined the moment and Calem turned abruptly back to face Tierno, whom he was sitting opposite.

"Isn't this just awesome! Come on Tierno, let's see the pokémon!" Shauna urged. I watched, mildly curious, as Tierno dug around in his bag before producing a case with three pokéballs inside it.

"Here they are – this one is Fennekin, this one is Chespin, and the last one is Froakie," Tierno told us.

Calem and Shauna both tuned to me. "Hey, you can pick first," Calem offered.

"Oh, er, are you sure? I mean, I really don't c-_mind _which one I get," I said, hastily correcting myself. I had almost told them I didn't care which one I got but, as much as I tried to convince myself that I didn't want friends, I didn't want to completely drive them away either.

"Of course," Shauna beamed. "It is thanks to you that we're getting pokémon after all – Professor Sycamore said in the letter that he chose us because you we removing to Vaniville Town." _Oh, he did, did he?_ I snarled inwardly. Scrap waiting until Lumiose City for my explanation. As soon as I was alone, I was so using my Holo Caster to 'visit' him.

Looking back at Shauna's expectant face, I swallowed. "If you insist, then… I'll take this one." I picked a random pokéball. "Eh… which one is this again?"

"That's Fennekin, the fire type," Trevor told me. I smiled at him as thanks and then watched as Calem went on to choose Froakie and Shauna happily picked up Chespin.

"By the way Seri, the professor also sent a letter for your mother. You should give it to her before you leave," Tierno remembered, handing me a white envelope. 'Grace' was written on the professor's messy handwriting on the front. I took a few calming gulps of air. So my mother was going to get an explanation but I wasn't. He hadn't even met my mother before! It wasn't fair… _Urgh, I sound like a child._

"That's… good," I said faintly, accepting the envelope and slipping it into my bag.

"Oh yes, and the professor also asked me to give you these," Trevor said, bringing out three square devices. "They're pokédex's – a pokédex records a pokémon's data once caught," he explained, giving us one each.

I accepted the pokédex and slipped that into my bad too. "I should probably go and see my mum – tell her where I'm going and give her this envelope." I stood up, about to leave.

"Hang on, I'll come with you," Calem called out. "I need to tell my parents where I'm going anyway," he added by way of explanation.

I just nodded. I wasn't in the mood for company but again, I didn't want to offend any of my new 'friends'.

"Okay, see you guys in Santalune Forest then," Shauna chirped as Calem and I headed towards the gate leading out of Aquacorde Town and towards Vaniville Town.

* * *

"So I guess you know all about being a pokémon trainer from your parents, right?" I asked Calem as we left Aquacorde town. I didn't want to dwell on the fact that I now had a pokémon but I couldn't think of anything else to say, and it would be an incredibly awkward walk back to Vaniville Town if neither of us said anything.

Calem glanced at me. Excitement from receiving Froakie still lingered in his eyes but I saw amusement there as well. "Do you know all about Ryhorn racing?"

I shrugged. "In theory, yes. In practise? Definitely not," I replied. My hand tightened around Fennekin's pokéball. The reason I was holding it instead of putting it into my bag like Calem had done was because I needed something to squeeze – squeezing things helped me calm down when I was angry (it was either that or screaming in rage and I think both my vocal cords and the eardrums of the people nearby would prefer me to squeeze something). It helped that the thing I was squeezing was the thing that had made me angry in the first place.

"Same here," Calem told me. "I know it all in theory, but in practise I'm as clueless as you are."

I squeezed Fennekin's pokéball once more. I needed something else to distract me, and fast. So I looked down and realised I was walking to close to Calem that if I reached out my hand slightly I would be able to take his hand in mine. _Argh! Anything to distract me but that! Quick, look for something else…_

"So how come your nickname is Cale?" I blurted out without pausing to wonder if asking that was slightly rude. I mean, it might be some embarrassing story that he didn't want to tell anyone, ever.

However Calem merely smiled. "Shauna thought I had introduced myself as Cale when we first met because I spoke so quietly. The name just stuck. She nicknamed herself Shaunster because she thought it was cool at the time, in case you were wondering," he explained.

"Yeah, cool," I murmured. My right hand, the one holding Fennekin's pokéball, suddenly began to shake. At first I thought it was because my arm was so tense, but then I realised it wasn't my hand that was shaking. It was the pokéball vibrating. "Huh?" I stopped and stared down at it. "Why's it doing that?"

Calem also looked surprised. "Maybe it wants to come out and meet you?" he suggested.

"No!" I snapped. I didn't even want to look at the _thing_ inside the pokéball. Calem flinched at the harshness of my tone, and I relented. "Sorry, I just…" not being able to come up with an excuse, I just held out Fennekin's pokéball. "I mean, I guess you might be right. How do I, you know, open it?"

Calem eyed me warily before reaching over and pointing to the white button in the middle of the device. "Press that," he said shortly. Ah… Judging by his tone, I guess I offended him. Well, at least I was able to put off opening the pokéball and actually meeting the thing inside for a little longer. But still, I hadn't meant to hurt Calem's feelings – he was only trying to help after all.

"Thanks," I said quietly. Before pressing it though, I looked at the black-haired boy. "I'm sorry for shouting at you. I guess I'm just nervous that I'm going to do something wrong…" It sounded like a weak excuse to me, but luckily Calem seemed to buy it.

"That's okay."

I considered looking for another form of procrastination but Calem was looking at me expectantly so I gave in and pressed the stupid button. There was a red flash and a weird creature with large ears, the tips of which reached my knee, appeared before me. "So, that's a Fennekin," I said. It was pale cream in colour with some extra white and orange colouring in places, and these weird orange fluffy bits spilling out of its too-large ears.

"Yeah." Calem was observing it with interest, but I looked at it in disgust. Its bright brown eyes were watching me curiously. I glared at it before turning away.

"What now? Do I return it or what?" I asked Calem, waving the now empty pokéball in the air.

Hearing my words the Fennekin skittered backwards, letting out a sharp bark. "Fennekin!"

I glared at it suspiciously. It glared back in defiance. Calem laughed. We both glared at Calem.

"I think Fennekin doesn't like her pokéball much," Calem told me, his voice full of amusement.

I glanced down at the device in question, and then looked up at Fennekin. "So? And what do you mean, her? I thought all starter pokémon are male," I said, slightly disgruntled.

Calem took out his pokédex. "This tells you information about the pokémon you catch, like their moves, their ability and their gender. Not all starter pokémon are male, by the way. Most are, and female starter pokémon are rare, but they do exist. The proof is literally glaring you in the face," he informed me. _Ha. Ha._ _Ha._

"Okay, but what did you mean when you said Fennekin doesn't like its– _her _pokéball? Don't all caught pokémon live in pokéballs?"

Calem shook his head. "Again, it's rare but a few pokémon prefer to stay outside of their pokéballs," he told me.

Realisation dawned. "Oh, so you mean Fennekin wants to stay outside her pokéball." I frowned. "No way am I travelling to Lumiose City with that thing walking by my side the whole way," I said, crossing my arms. Fennekin narrowed her eyes at me.

Calem raised his eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

I flushed. "Er, I meant that… um… it might be dangerous for… cute, darling little Fennekin…" I said weakly, but Calem wasn't stupid.

"Seri," he began, but I cut him off.

"Don't all me that!"

He looked surprised. "You said we could call you that," he pointed out.

I clenched my teeth. "Yes, but only because of the way that you said it," I admitted. "My dad used to call me Seri, so the name holds a special meaning for me. Then after- I mean, then random acquaintances of my mum would call me Seri in these sickening voices and it felt like they were taunting me. I grew to hate it when anyone called me Seri, even my own mum. But then you went and called me Seri like it actually meant something instead of just a casual nickname thought up on the spur of the moment and I realised I didn't mind so much." I spoke fast but while looking at him the whole time, and after I had finished I felt like kicking myself. I was an idiot to pour out one of my deepest secrets to someone I had only met about an hour ago, but looking into his eyes it _felt_ like I could trust him. _Urgh, if his eyes are going to make me spill all my secrets then I have to stop looking at them_. I tore my eyes away from his and stared at the grass by my feet.

After a moment's pause, Calem spoke up in a soft voice. "I'm sorry. I'll call you Serena if you want," he offered.

I chanced a glace up at him. He wasn't laughing at me and he wasn't teasing me about it. "No, it's okay. You can call me Seri." I said. Again, I wanted to kick myself. Why did I just tell him that? "I'm sorry for blowing up at you, I'm just in a bad mood at the moment," I added. "Sorry."

Calem offered me a smile. "Don't worry about it. Shauna rants at me all the time; I'm used to it. I guess that's what comes of having a girl as a best friend," he shrugged.

"Hey!" I protested. "I'm a girl too!" Calem just perked an eyebrow at me. Felling the tense atmosphere dissolve, and my anger away with it, I poked him. He just flashed me a grin and took my hand.

"Come on, Vaniville Town is just up ahead," he said, beginning to walk again and pulling me along with him. A warm feeling blossomed in my chest as I felt my hand in his. It felt… nice.

When we reached the entrance gate, Calem dropped my hand. Before we walked through it, I faced him with a grateful expression on my face.

"Thanks," I said.

Calem looked surprised. "What for?"

"For listening to me," I replied simply.

Calem just smiled again. "What are friends for?" he asked jokingly.

I felt that warm feeling in my chest again at his words. Friends… But then I pushed it away and my expression hardened. I didn't need friends. I couldn't have friends. _I'm a lone girl, and sooner or later Calem will have to realise that too_.

* * *

I left my mum's house with my bag packed full of things for my journey. It turned out the reason Mum had been acting so suspicious and wanting me to get out of the house this morning was because she had known exactly what Professor Sycamore had planned for me. It aggravated me that she was taking his side in this. Apparently I 'need to get out more'. Whatever that meant. Now I was waiting for Calem at the entrance to Vaniville Town, looking absentmindedly at the honeysuckle growing near the old gateway. I didn't want to wait for him, but we had arranged to meet up here and it would be rude if I just left without him.

"Fen, Fennekin," an unpleasantly familiar voice barked, startling me out of my thoughts. I groaned, turning to see my stupid pokémon standing behind me.

"I thought I left you behind," I muttered in annoyance. "What do you want, trailing after me like a lost Lillipup?"

"Fennekin," the starter pokémon glowered at me, and then I heard her stomach rumble. Of course.

"You want food? Well you're not getting any," I told it – ahem, I meant _her_. "Not until I ask Calem what you even eat, anyway," I added under my breath. As much as I disliked pokémon, I wasn't going to let her starve. I'm not cruel.

"Serena! Sorry I'm late, my mum fusses too much," Calem called, jogging up to me with his rucksack looking like it might burst at any moment.

"It's fine," I shrugged. "Let's just get going."

"Actually…" Calem hesitated, pulling out Froakie's pokéball, "I was wondering if you wanted to battle. Since we both have pokémon now it would be a good way to get to know both them and each other a little better."

I didn't know what to say to that. He made a good point, but I couldn't care less about getting to know Fennekin better. Plus I didn't have the faintest idea of how to battle. However if I declined then he would want to know why, so I sighed and reluctantly agreed to his suggestion. Two minutes later we were stood opposite each other, with both our pokémon out in front of us in the large green space which was the centre of Vaniville Town, and just in front of the Vaniville Town gate, Calem having briefed me on the basics of battling.

As I looked at Froakie and Calem, I couldn't help but observe how they both seemed a little uncertain with each other. Froakie kept glancing back at his trainer and Calem looked unsure of himself. However they both seemed willing to work together and to get to know each other.

Next I glanced at Fennekin. She stood tall – or as tall as she could get, anyway – in front of me with her ears pricked. She didn't look at me once. If I could see her face then I was sure I would see stubbornness on it. How different she and I were compared to Calem and Froakie.

"Okay Froakie, let's start with Leer," Calem called out the first move._ Leer? What does that do? _I wondered, watching as Froakie narrowed his eyes at Fennekin. Fennekin seemed to shrink slightly as if intimidated. "Leer lowers your foe's defence," Calem explained upon seeing the confusion on my face.

"Oh, okay," I replied unenthusiastically. "Well, erm, Fennekin use Scratch," I called out to my pokémon. Acting on Calem's advice, I had checked my pokédex to see which moves Fennekin knew and what the effect of those moves were. To my annoyance Fennekin ignored my command, turned around so she was facing me, and began to wag her tail in Froakie's direction. "What is that supposed to be?" I glared at Fennekin. "Don't tell me you're going to win the battle just by _wagging your tail_ at your opponent," I said sarcastically.

Fennekin stuck her nose in the air, still ignoring me. _Great, not only do I get lumped with a pokémon I didn't want in the first place, but I get lumped with one that won't listen to me. _

"That was Tail Whip that Fennekin just used. Maybe she wants to try out some different moves?" Calem suggested. "She'll probably start listening to you soon. After all, she's probably just as eager to get to know you as you are to get to know her." _Not eager at all, then. _"Froakie, use Tackle," he ordered his little blue water pokémon.

Froakie began hopping towards Fennekin with a determined glint in his eye. "Fennekin, use Scratch," I tried again, but to no use. Fennekin simply sat there and took Froakie's tackle. The attack pushed her back but she stayed on her paws. I glared at the back of her stupid cream head. "If you won't listen to me then we're going to lose this battle," I growled at her. Why wouldn't the insensitive thing just _listen _to me? "Now, use Ember!"

But again, Fennekin refused to listen, instead launching a Scratch attack on Froakie. "Oh, so you'll scratch him when you want to use Scratch but not when I want you to use Scratch?" I was getting more and more frustrated, but I tried to keep my cool as Calem didn't look in the least bit fazed. He actually looked excited, and completely absorbed in the battle.

"Froakie, use Bubble and wrap this up." Looking up at me, Calem added, "You know, I thought you'd be a harder opponent to beat but I guess I was wrong."

"I thought you were supposed to be helping me, not taunting me, _friend_," I muttered under my breath.

Froakie's Bubble attack shot towards Fennekin. I yelled at her to dodge but just to spite me she stayed put and the attack hit her full on. I was surprised when she buckled though and fell to her knees. I thought she was tougher than that.

"I'm amazed Fennekin is still hanging in there," Calem remarked. "After all, water is super effective to fire." _Oh. That's why Fennekin looks like she's on her last legs._

"One more Bubble should do it Froakie: you're doing great so far," Calem told his pokémon. _Oh yeah, that's right, rub it in,_ I thought darkly. _Just because you two are getting on so well…_

"Froakie," Calem's pokémon croaked happily. He drew himself up for another Bubble attack but someone walked in to the middle of the battle, seemingly from out of nowhere.

"Your Froakie looks strong," the boy commented. He had dark, spiky chocolate brown hair and sea green eyes. His hands were stuck in his pockets and his clothes were casual. Under different circumstanced I might have found him handsome but I was too worked up at Fennekin to pay attention to much else.

"Thanks," Calem replied. "But we're in the middle of a battle," he replied pointedly, slightly confused as the boy, who looked about our age, bent down to tickle Froakie's chin. The water pokémon lapped up the attention.

Ignoring Calem, the boy looked at me next. "So I guess that's your Fennekin?" he asked. Disdain colouring his tone as he glanced at my pokémon.

"What's it to you?" I glared at him. So what if I didn't like Fennekin? That didn't mean he could disrespect her. She was my pokémon after all.

"Oh, nothing much. Just, she looks really weak. If you ever want to get more than a few steps further in life you're going to need to train her up a bit more," the boy said casually. Both Fennekin and I glared daggers at the boy.

"You really don't want to mess with me," I spat but he turned his back on me, focusing once more on Calem and Froakie. Fennekin let out an irritated hiss.

"On the other hand, your Froakie looks like he knows what he's doing. In fact, he's too good for a weak trainer like you," the boy told Calem.

Calem frowned. "What are you talking about?"

The boy smirked and picked Froakie up. Oblivious to his trainer's discontent, Froakie was still lapping up the boy's attention. "It means I'm taking this Froakie off you because I believe I will bring out his strengths more effectively that you ever could," he said smartly. Then he turned and marched right out of Vaniville Town with Calem's Froakie nestled in his arms.

"Hey! Get back here; you can't steal my pokémon!" Calem shouted after him, beginning to follow him. In answer the boy broke into a run, with Calem chasing after him.

I looked at Fennekin; Fennekin looked at me. _Maybe I can't do pokémon battles, but I certainly can chase down the bad guy, (beat him up if need be) and return Calem's Froakie to him. _As I began running after the boy as well, with Fennekin running by my side, a smirk graced my face.

This, I was good at.

* * *

**Author's Note: **So that's that chapter done and dusted. Hopefully you enjoyed it but even if you didn't, I would still appreciate a review!

Thanks to Rainy Daze Writer for reviewing, and thanks also to everyone who favourited/followed. Maybe I can convince some of you who favourited it to review?

Thanks for reading,

~Jay


	3. Hanging in There

**Disclaimer: **Pokemon don't belong to moi.

Heh, sorry for the long wait. I am giving you an action-packed chapter plus a cliff hanger to make up for it ;)

Enjoy.

* * *

**Chapter Two**

**~ Hanging in There ~**

"Where'd he go?" Calem panted, skidding to a halt in Aquacorde's Town Square. I stopped next to him, looking around carefully. We had chased the boy who stole Calem's Froakie all the way from Vaniville Town to Aquacorde Town and I wasn't about to give up now.

I noticed a shady figure slipping into an alleyway behind a row of houses lining the square out of the corner of my eye. _Gotcha_.

I glanced at Calem, instantly pointing in the opposite direction. "We should split up to cover more ground. You go that way, and I'll go this way. Meet you back here in half an hour," I told him, the bossy side of my personality slipping into my tone. I didn't wait for his response before springing after the thief. In my rush I accidentally knocked a woman over but I didn't have time to stop and help her up so I just yelled an apology over my shoulder. I couldn't let the thief escape.

Entering the alleyway I paused at the entrance, scanning the walls. They were made of brick, and the walls on the left enclosed gardens attached to houses. The walls on the right were just walls with some bins lining them.

_There._ I saw a figure dart out from the shadows and exit the alleyway the opposite end to where I was standing. Cursing, I ran after him. I should have checked to see if the alley was open both ends. When I emerged once more into the Town Square I immediately spotted the thief heading towards the bridge with Froakie still in his arms.

"You're not going to get away this time," I muttered, running after him. I paid no heed to the civilians who exclaimed in surprise at my hurry, but I was more careful this time and I didn't knock anyone over.

_Slap, slap, slap_. My trainers smacked against the cobblestone of the bridge in a rhythmic beat. I wasn't the fastest person in the world, or the fittest, but my years of spy training paid off as I settled into a rhythm. The adrenaline was already pumping through my veins and I relished the feeling – it was what I lived for. I wasn't even panting when I reached the other end of the bridge, although my breathing was slightly heavier.

I stopped after jumping off the bridge and took my time to look at the route ahead. It was mostly long grass that led straight up to the entrance of what I guessed was Santalune Forest, the edges of the route being lined with trees and bushes apart from a space on the left which was the edge of a cliff. At the bottom of the cliff was a sparkling blue river which I guessed supplied water to the fountain in the Aquacorde Town Square. It was actually really pretty- I might even go so far as to say it was beautiful with the sunlight bouncing off it. However, there was no sign of the thief who stole Froakie anywhere. In fact, there was no sign of any human life, period. Remembering my training, I closed my eyes and listened to the sounds around me. I could hear some bird pokémon calling out to each other, some other pokémon digging holes in the bank… and the battle cries of two pokémon fighting each other. One of them, I realised, sounded a lot like Froakie.

Snapping my eyes open, I dropped into a half crouch and snuck forwards, moving through the tall grass as quietly as I could using its height to hide me from view. After about a minute I found what I had been looking for; the thief was using Froakie to battle a random wild pokémon. This pokémon was mostly grey but the tips of its over-sized ears, its small ruff and its hindlegs were brown. As I watched, it tackled Froakie, sending the water pokémon flying backwards. _Wow, that's some strength it's got,_ I thought as I wondered what kind of pokémon it was.

I suddenly remembered the pokédex Trevor had given me and pulled it out of my bag. Pointing it at the unfamiliar pokémon, I waited for the machine to crackle into life.

"_Bunnelby – the digging pokémon. They use their large ears to dig burrows. They will dig the whole night through_," my pokédex informed me.

"Whatever," I muttered, losing interest. After placing the device back in my bag I glanced around for the nearest tree and spotted an oak growing on the edge of the cliff partly overhanging the river below. One leafy branch was jutting out right over the top of the thief's head. _Perfect._

"Come on Froakie, you can do better than that. Use Bubble," the thief commanded the stolen pokémon, unaware that I was scaling a tree which would place me directly above his head when I reached my chosen branch.

"…Froakie…" Froakie looked uncertain as the opposing Bunnelby eyed him warily.

The boy tapped his foot impatiently. "I know I'm not your trainer but I promise if you do this one thing for me I'll return you to him safe and sound, okay? I might even throw a poképuff into the deal."

_Eh? What in the world is a poképuff?_ Losing my focus I lost my footing and slipped. An involuntary yelp of surprise slipped out of my mouth as I grabbed onto the nearest branch to save myself from an embarrassing fall, and I swung my dangling legs until they found something to rest on too. Scowling, I adjusted my position and continued climbing, this time concentrating fiercely on what I was doing until I was safely sitting on the branch I had singled out earlier. Turning my attention back to the battle below, I was relieved to see that the thief still suspected nothing.

"Great Froakie!" the thief cheered. I glared at him as Froakie did some sort of weird victory dance. "I caught Bunnelby!" Looking more closely at the boy I saw he was holding a pokéball in his hands, in which I guessed Bunnelby had been caught_. Now, time for my grand entrance._ I prepared myself for jumping gracefully out of the tree and landing in front of the thief to surprise him so much that I could snatch Froakie up from under his nose, make a smart remark about how thieving is another form of cowardice or something along such lines, and then sweep away grandly to return Froakie to Calem who would be forever grateful to me. What I did not plan on was Calem's sudden appearance.

"Hey, you – give Froakie back to me!" Calem demanded as he erupted, panting, from the tall grass. He looked slightly dishevelled with his hair all messy and his jacket flying open but I personally didn't mind (he looked hot). However, I did mind that he had just interrupted my plan. _It was a good plan too_, I thought resentfully.

"Why should I?" the thief retorted, quickly picking Froakie up. "He's been very useful so far; I think I might just keep him."

Calem glared at him. "He's my pokémon – you better give him back before I call the police," he threatened.

The thief laughed. "Oooh, I'm scared," he mocked. "Sorry to break it to you mate, but I'll be long gone before the police get here."

"Give him back," Calem repeated hotly.

The thief just laughed even harder. "Make me," he retorted. "Oh, I forgot. You don't have a pokémon so you can't," he added gleefully. Calem gritted his teeth and Froakie squirmed in the thief's arms, trying to wriggle free.

_Maybe I can salvage my entrance after all_, I thought, about to jump down from the tree. Unfortunately for me the branch I was balancing on wasn't very stable and it broke before I could jump. With a huge snapping sound the branch fell crashing towards the ground, taking me with it. I twisted in the air, my instincts taking over, and I hit the ground at a roll just as Professor Sycamore had taught me. However the branch was tangled with my legs so it rolled with me and I ended up underneath it. _Oh_ _well. At least nothing is broken,_ I told myself, trying to think positively.

"Serena?" Calem called, sounding surprised. He ran to my side and I blinked as he peered down at me in worry. "Seri, are you okay?"

"Hi Calem," I gave him as brighter smile as I could muster. "Yep, perfectly fine," I assured him.

"You just fell out of a tree," Calem pointed out with that look of surprise still fixed on his face.

"Yep," I tried to nod but a twig poked me in the eye and I yelped. "I'm fine!" I said quickly. "But some help getting up would be appreciated," I added, trying (and failing) to shift the branch off of me.

Calem nodded and helped move the branch before giving me a hand up. Immediately I was on my feet I turned to the thief, ignoring my jumping heart. _Shut up,_ I growled to my heart. I _have to concentrate on the situation at hand, not Calem_, I thought firmly.

"You," I pointed at the thief.

He perked an eyebrow. "Yes, Seri?" He looked thoroughly amused by everything that had just happened. To be honest if I was in his situation then I'd be highly amused as well, but that didn't make me want to wipe the smirk off his face any less.

"Give Calem back his pokémon. And don't call me Seri!"

The thief rolled his eyes. "No."

"Then I'll make you," I warned him.

The thief glanced around. "I don't see that stupid Fennekin of yours anywhere – and even if I could see it I wouldn't be worried," he remarked lazily. "Anyway, as fun as this has been, I really do have to be going. Ta," he said sarcastically and began walking away.

"Who says 'ta' nowadays?" I muttered to Calem, but he wasn't listening.

"You won't get away with this," he called after the thief. The thief just raised his hand in a two finger salute but he didn't falter or turn back.

"Don't worry, I'll get Froakie back," I promised Calem, a grim look setting on my face.

Calem glanced at me. "How? You don't have Fennekin," he pointed out.

I almost growled aloud in frustration. "I don't need Fennekin! I can do it myself!" Not waiting for his reply I took off once more, running and tacking the thief, sending him sprawling on the ground.

"Let… Froakie… go," I grunted, trying to wrestle Calem's pokémon out of his arms.

"No," the thief spat. He held onto Froakie with an iron-like grip, kicking me away. I hissed in pain – I would have a bruise later – but I didn't give up. Without giving him a chance to get up off the ground I threw myself back at him, punching his cheek. He grabbed my leg and pulled me down on the ground where we began wrestling properly. I was barely aware of the fact Froakie had escaped from the thief when he loosened his grip on the pokémon, too caught up in trying to catch my breath. The thief knew how to fight, I'd give him that.

"Serena, stop it," Calem called. "I've got Froakie, now let's just go – Serena!" His voice sounded distant as the blood pounded in my ears. At the moment I was on top, trying to claw the thief's face, but he rolled us over so he was on top. I kneed him in the stomach, briefly winding him. He spat in my face and I was temporarily blinded.

"Get off her you sicko," Calem growled at the thief. I was dimly aware of Calem trying to pull the boy off of me but I took no notice, rolling us over and over in an attempt to make him dizzy. I had forgotten about the cliff edge though, because suddenly both the thief and I were tumbling through thin air.

Calem yelling "Serena!" was the last thing I heard before we hit the water with a huge splash. Instantly water flooded my mouth as I flailed my arms and legs, trying to swim. The current grabbed me and I was useless against it – I knew how to swim but not very well, and I certainly couldn't fight a current. I was dragged under the water and my chest tightened as I began to fast run out of air. My ankle hit a rock and in desperation I tried to drag myself upwards. Just before I passed out I broke through the surface, coughing and spluttering.

All I could see was water, all around me. Green and blue colours merged together and my eyes stung. It was freezing cold and my limbs were beginning to go numb. The roaring of the river pounded in my eardrums as it carried me downstream.

Suddenly, a voice sliced through the rushing of the river. "Serena, swim towards my voice." I recognised Calem and his calm tone filled me with hope. Renewing my efforts, I struck out blindly towards his voice. "Froakie, he-," he added but the water sucked me under before I could hear the end of his sentence.

Darkness clouded my vision as I struggled. For the first time I was terrified for my life. Memories flashed in front of my eyes: watching Mum at a race, having dinner with Dad, the first time Professor Sycamore approached me with the offer of becoming his spy, our first training session, and the time I begun to dislike pokémon.

I didn't know how much time had passed before something grabbed my arm and pulled me up until my head broke the surface once more. Gasping for breath I wildly grabbed onto my saviour. I briefly wondered if it was Calem but it was too small to be him. Then all thoughts vacated my head as I was dragged out of the river. I clutched onto the grassy bank but I didn't have the strength to pull myself up, and neither did the one who was helping me. I was all but ready to give up when warm hands took hold of my cold ones and someone pulled me up onto the bank. I collapsed into the person's arms coughing up river water. The person was warm and dry, and he spoke to me in a soothing voice.

"Hey, it's okay, it's over now. You're safe," he said, holding me close.

Cracking open my eyes, I couldn't believe it. "C-Calem?" I croaked, my teeth chattering because of the cold. _He_ saved me? I was ready to die then and there; partly due to the cold, partly due to embarrassment and partly due to the heart attack I was having at being in his arms, but I pushed myself away from him when I remembered the reason I had fallen into the river in the first place.

"Seri?" Calem frowned. "We need to get you back to Aquacorde Town," he said, reaching out from my hand.

I shook my head, shivering without Calem warming me. "W-where's the oth-other b-b-boy?" I asked, my chattering teeth making me stutter.

Calem glanced back towards the river. Following his gaze, I saw the thief being swept away downstream. "Good riddance," he muttered, but I knew he didn't mean that. A pang tugged at my heart. As much as I hated him for stealing Froakie and getting me into this mess, I couldn't let him die.

"We h-h-have t-to hel-lp." I stumbled away from Calem but my legs moved sluggishly and if Calem hadn't caught me I would have fallen back into the river. I shivered even more at the thought.

"It's not safe – if you don't get somewhere warm and dry right now I don't even want to think about what might happen," Calem shook his head. "He brought it on himself anyway."

Stubbornly I shook my head and began to stumble after the thief once more. It went against my spy training to let another human die if I could help it but more than that it went against my own instincts as a human. Yes, what the thief had done wasn't right, but he didn't deserve to die. And it was me who had rolled us into the river.

"Okay, I'll help," Calem grumbled. "Here," he sighed and picked me up.

"H-h-hey," I complained weakly, trying to ignore how nice it felt to be in his arms.

Calem began to run after the thief who was still being dragged downstream. "Sorry, but you won't get very far by yourself in this state," he explained as he ran. I was dimly aware of Froakie hopping after us, and I realised it was Froakie who had helped me when I was in the water. I made a mental note to thank him later.

"Uh-oh," Calem muttered after about a minute or so.

"What?" I was still freezing but Calem had warmed me up enough to stop my teeth chattering.

Calem set me down on the grassy back. "The thief is headed for a waterfall. There's nothing I can do," he said, looking out over the stretch of water.

"What?" I gasped, getting to my feet. I squinted and was just able to make out the thief's dark head bobbing along as he tried to fight the current, but his attempts were getting weaker and weaker the closer he got to the waterfall.

I ran as close to the water as I dared to get. "Hey, thief!" I called out. My voice wavered and I almost tripped and fell – my feet were stull numb and I was stumbling all over the place but I took no notice. "The rock – grab the rock!" I yelled as loud as I could, stopping when I was standing close to the waterfall. Calem came up behind me and wrapped an arm around my waist for support but for once I ignored him. "Don't give up now, you can do it!" I encouraged, but I broke down coughing up more river water. The next time I looked up, panic gripped me. The thief was no-where in sight.

"I think he's holding onto the rock like you told him," Calem muttered in my ear. "But he looks too weak to pull himself up…"

I followed Calem's gaze and swallowed. I could now see the thief's hands gripping the rock but his head was under water. He wouldn't last much longer.

"Call for help," I told Calem, scanning the bank.

"On it," Calem muttered, searching his bag for his Holo Caster. "Wait – what are you doing?"

I glanced back at him. "Saving a life," I muttered before taking a deep, shuddering breath and jumping. I know what you're thinking: that's so stupid of you, what do you think you're doing, you're risking your life for someone you don't even know and you know he wouldn't do the same if he was in your situation. Or if you're not thinking that then… whatever. The point is, I was doing something stupid. Yes, I had just jumped back into the river which not five minutes ago I thought would become my deathbed But this time I was in control and I knew what I was doing. I knew I could save his life.

The river wasn't very wide so it should have taken only a couple of arm strokes for me to reach the rock the thief was clinging onto for dear life but in my weakened state it took me seven arm strokes and a whole lot of hope. The river seemed to be trying its hardest to drown me but I was determined not to give it the satisfaction.

After what seemed like forever I finally reached the rock. I was almost too weak to pull myself up but, somehow, I managed. The rock was wet and slippery, and only just big enough to me to sit on it. I briefly wondered how I was going to get the thief on as well but I decided to focus on keeping myself on the slab of stone and not letting the river wash me away. The river lapped at the stone and spray leaped at my face. I had to grip onto the edges of the stone to ensure I wouldn't fall off.

"Help… me…" a hoarse voice gasped. I looked down to see the thief pathetically hanging onto the edge of the stone for his dear life, with his hair slicked back by the river and a terrified look in his eyes. "Can't… hold… on…"

"No," I muttered, grabbing his hands before the river could sweep him away. "Come on, pull yourself up," I told him, trying to pull him up myself. He was too heavy. "Please, just pull yourself up," I begged him. He tried to speak but another wave crashed over his head and he began coughing violently, my grip on his hand almost slipping. I was frozen with no idea what to do.

I looked around desperately until a flash of cream and orange caught my eye. Staring at the opposite bank I saw Fennekin sitting there watching me.

"Fennekin!" I shouted. "Help me!" I pushed aside my dislike for the pokémon. If she would only help me, I would go on a journey without any more protest. I would try to 'befriend' her and I would never again call her useless. But Fennekin simply wrapped her tail around her paws and turned her head away. Hatred for the pokémon filled my body and that, mixed with newfound determination to prove that I didn't need her anyway, lent strength to my limbs. I heaved on the thief's arm and managed to drag him onto the stone, but in doing so I had to move backwards. Forgetting that the stone wasn't big enough for the both of us I fell back and with a scream I felt myself falling back into the river. I would have been dragged down the waterfall if it wasn't for the thief. He had grabbed my hands when I began to slip and he was now holding on tightly.

"I've g-g-got you," he muttered through chattering teeth. The river was tugging me with all its strength but the boy holding onto my hand didn't let go. But neither of us had much strength left, and I could feel his arms shaking with effort. If he wasn't careful, he would get pulled back into the river as well. A sudden thought occurred to me – if I told him to let go I would go over the waterfall and die, but he would live and the rescue team would make sure he survived. However if he kept holding on to me we both might die.

Fear gripped my body. I knew the right thing to do would be to let go so that he could at least live, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. As selfish as I sounded, I didn't want to die. So I clung onto his hand with all my remaining strength.

Looking up at the thief, I saw hesitation in his eyes. The same thought must have occurred to him – that he would survive if he let go of my hand. For a moment it looked like he was going to let go, but then he suddenly let himself fall backwards. He fell so suddenly that I was jerked forwards, my arms and upper body pulled onto the stone while my legs remained in the water. His upper body also remained on the rock, but his bottom half was in the water as well. For a moment I was confused, but then I realised: the rock wasn't big enough for both of us. So we were sharing it.

"Th-th-thank y-y-you," I whispered, gazing into his dark brown eyes. For a moment I thought he hadn't heard me over the roaring of the waterfall, but then he managed a thin smile.

"Y-you're we-we-welcome."

"Seri, the rescue team are on their way," Calem called from the bank. "Hang in there!"

So hang in there I tried to do. Then I blacked out.

* * *

**Author's Note: **So, who thinks Serena and the thief are going to live? Or do you think they will die? Let me know your thought sin a review! And please tell me how I did writing the action, it's my first time writing action so feedback would be much appreciated.

Next chapter we have the after effects of the river episode, the appearance of a shameful Fennekin, and an interesting call from Professor Sycamore.

Thanks for reading!

~ Jay


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